Bennett-Cooper urges public education on bill to blot out criminal convictions
Published:Monday | February 2, 2026 | 12:05 AMEdmond Campbell/Senior Parliamentary Reporter
Government Senator Rose Bennett-Cooper has called for the administration to roll out a comprehensive public education exercise to inform Jamaicans with old, non-custodial convictions on how to have their criminal records expunged.
She made the call yesterday during a debate on the Criminal Records (Rehabilitation of Offenders) (Amendment) bill in the Upper House. The bill was passed without amendment.
In her maiden presentation on Friday, Bennett-Cooper said it was important that Jamaicans get an in-depth understanding of which convictions are eligible for expungement and those that are not.
She wants details to be provided on how to apply for expungement, what is involved in the rehabilitation process and the factors that the Criminal Records Rehabilitation of Offenders Board consider when they review applications to erase criminal records.
“It is important for persons to be given hope – hope that finally at last you can now get rid of that conviction. You can now get rid of that criminal record that has been holding you down and holding you back from getting on with your life and making choices for the betterment of your family,” she said.
With the membership of the board being increased from five to nine, Bennett-Cooper said this would allow for more sittings to review a larger number of applications for expungement.
Bureaucratic delays
However, Opposition Senator Allan Bernard said while the bill facilitates an expansion in the eligibility criteria for persons applying for expungement and an increase in the number of board members, the legislation is silent on how it would remedy delays in blotting out criminal records.
He warned that bureau-cratic delays that have undermined certain processes in government might stymie the proposed amendments in the bill.
Citing the Access to Information Act, Bernard said a recent survey by Jamaicans for Justice found that nearly one-third of statutory information requested received no response within the mandatory 30-day period and another one-third received no response at all.
Bernard called on the administration to disclose performance data under the existing rehabilitation of offenders law, specifically, the average time between application for expungement, determination by the board and the actual erasure of the offence.
In his contribution, Government Senator Christian Tavares-Finson welcomed the amendments to the legislation. He said the bill expands the list of offences eligible for rehabilitation and expungement. This, he said, allows for more individuals who have served their sentences and demonstrated reform the opportunity to move forward without the lifelong burden of a criminal record.
“This is not an abandonment of accountability, rather it is a recognition that justice must evolve beyond punishment towards restoration.”
He argued that too often a criminal record becomes a permanent barrier blocking access to employment, housing, education and entrepreneurship.
Tavares-Finson reasoned that when individuals are denied opportunities they are likely to return to a life of crime, “not because they want to, but because society has closed every other door”.
He said the bill seeks to break that cycle by giving deserving citizens a structured second chance to participate meaningfully in the economy, support their families and contribute to their community.
The Lower House passed the bill on October 14 last year.